The World Wide Web and Internet, in general, have created a completely new venue in which to obtain information, purchase goods and services, and interact with other network users. Accordingly, many sources of products and services have established web sites containing information about products, services and available information. A number of commercially available software applications, e.g. web browsers, executable on a conventional computer architecture enable users to connect to the Internet and provide a graphic user interface and appropriate functionality for locating and exploring “websites”. Examples of such commercially available browsers include Netscape Navigator, commercially available from America On Line, Inc., or Internet Explorer, commercially available from Microsoft Corporation, Redmond, Wash. Websites typically comprise a server operatively coupled to the Internet, the server having one or more “pages” which may be explored by a user using the web browser application.
Using a web browser, computer shoppers have the ability to access and purchase products and services from far reaching locations, including international locations. In order to purchase a product, the shopper accesses the web site server of a vendor, selects a product, provides payment, typically in the form of credit card information, and provides delivery instructions to the vendor.
The purchase of goods and services over the Internet, referred to hereafter as, “eCommerce”, has become very popular recently. In many instances, eCommerce vendors try to emulate normal retail commerce with varying degrees of success. For example, gift-buying via eCommerce has failed to emulate normal retail commerce as a result of its inherent lack of personalization. In the real world, when giving a gift, a person typically purchases a product as a gift. In addition, the person may purchase a card to help express his or her thoughts about the gift or the occasion. Such cards usually contain personal, handwritten messages and are packaged along with the gift for simultaneous presentation to the recipient.
It is possible to purchase products or services as gifts from the websites of eCommerce vendors and have them sent to a recipient's address. It is also possible to purchase electronic cards over the Internet to be delivered either to the recipient's e-mail address or printed in hard copy form and delivered to the recipient's postal address. However, no known service or facility exists which enables an eCommerce shopper to purchase a gift over the Internet and concurrently select and personalize a greeting card to be packaged or shipped along with the gift. Some companies do provide a limited selection hard copy cards that maybe shipped with a gift, similar to the note cards which accompany floral deliveries.
In addition, current on-line electronic greeting card services, such as those offered by Hallmark, Inc., City, State, or American Greetings Corporation, Cleveland, Ohio, enable users to select a card and customize the card by entering text into a dialog box via the webserver graphic user interface. Such services do not enable the user to add handwritten notes, graphics, photographs, or other customizations to the card. These services do not allow the user to decide where the text should go, what font, color, size, etc. should be used for the text.
Systems which enable the on-line creation of greeting cards and distribution of the greeting cards with gifts are disclosed in published PCT Patent application Serial No. PCT/US00/41272, entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR DISTRIBUTION OF GREETING CARDS WITH ELECTRONIC COMMERCE TRANSACTION.
There is also a current lack of personalization associated with gift cards, e.g. credit card-sized cards made of plastic with a magnetic strip on the back of the card, but not limited to such design. Such gift cards or stored value cards, as sometimes called, may be physically purchased at many retail establishments. People shopping through the Internet, through catalogs, and through retail kiosks can also purchase a gift card, however, they do not have the ability to match the gift card with a personalized greeting card.
Current systems either cause a computer to print a gift card, read the magnetic strip, which then cause the printing of a laser printed message on a folded thin sheet of paper. The gift card and printed documented are then attached together. In order to match the speed of the gift card generation, the cards require a fast single color laser printer to print the piece of paper. The second method of combining a laser printed message on thin paper with a gift card is for the computer that causes the gift card to print will simultaneously cause the laser printer to print a message that will print on a thin sheet of paper and match up with the gift card. These methods are not possible with the printing of greeting cards as there are no printers that can print four color retail quality cards on-demand fast enough to match the necessary efficiency of the printing of gift cards.
A need exists, therefore, for technology so that a person can purchase a gift card from either a Internet website, catalog, and/or retail kiosk, then choose a retail quality greeting card, personalize the greeting card, and send it as a gift with a gift card embedded inside the greeting card.
A further need exists for technology so that a person can purchase any greeting card, personalize the greeting card, and then assign that greeting card to have a gift card inserted inside it.